[What] is noteworthy is that Bacon applied himself to the sciences in a practical manner, apprehending phenomena in a reflective fashion and considering first "their utility." He pursued this course methodically; he did not put forward mere opinions or sentiments and did not express his views on the sciences in the way a fine gentleman would, but proceeded meticulously and established a method for scientific cognition and general principles for cognitive procedure. The methodical character of the approach that he introduced is just what makes him noteworthy in the history of the sciences and of philosophy, and it was through this principle of methodical cognition that he had great influence….

Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, in his Lectures on the History of Philosophy, 3 Vols., 1833.